Meeting documents

Notice of Meeting

Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee Tuesday 14 March 2006 at 10.00 am at County Hall, Oxford

Membership

Chairman – Councillor Mrs Anda Fitzgerald O’Connor

Deputy Chairman – Councillor Keith Stone

Derek Bishop
Head of Democratic Services

March 2006

About the County Council

The Oxfordshire County Council is made up of 74 councillors who are democratically elected every four years. The Council provides a range of services to Oxfordshire’s 622,000 people. These include:

The Council employs 18,840 people. Each year the Council manages £0.7 billion of public money in providing these services. Most decisions are taken by a Cabinet of 10 Councillors, which makes decisions about service priorities and spending.

About Scrutiny

Scrutiny is about:

• Providing a challenge to the Cabinet
• Examining how well the Cabinet and the Authority are performing
• Influencing the Cabinet on decisions that affect local people
• Helping the Cabinet to develop Council policies
• Representing the community in Council decision making
• Promoting joined up working across the authority’s work

Scrutiny is NOT about:

• Making day to day service decisions
• Investigating individual complaints.

Five Scrutiny committees ‘scrutinise’ or review and challenge decisions made by the Cabinet and help it develop Council policies. There are Scrutiny Committees for:

• Corporate Governance
• Children’s Services
• Environment & Economy
• Community Safety
• Health & Community Services

There is also a Joint Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee which brings together councillors from the County and the five district councils in Oxfordshire to scrutinise health issues.

What does this Committee do?

The Committee meets up to 6 times a year or more. It develops a work programme, which lists the issues it plans to investigate. These investigations can include whole committee investigations undertaken during the meeting, or reviews by a panel of members doing research and talking to lots of people outside of the meeting. Once an investigation is completed the Committee provides its advice to the Cabinet, the full Council or other scrutiny committees. Meetings are open to the public and all reports are available to the public unless exempt or confidential, when the items would be considered in closed session.

  AGENDA

1. Apologies for Absence and Temporary Appointments
   
   
2. Declarations of Interest – see guidance note
   
   
3. Speaking to or Petitioning the Committee
   
   
4. White Paper : Higher Standards, Better Schools for All

10:05

Background Information:	The report on the White Paper circulated to the Committee on 28 February (CH11) gave an overview of the contents of the White Paper, with a particular focus on those proposals which indicated a change in the role of local authorities. One main purpose of that report was to provide a basis for the Cabinet to consider how to respond to the three motions relating to the White Paper (two from Councillor Jean Fooks, one from Councillor Val Smith) which the Council on 10 January had referred to the Cabinet, via this Committee, to advise the Council at its 4 April meeting. The text of the motions is reproduced herewith (CH4) for ease of reference. (CH4 - A Short Guide to the Education and Inspection Bill 200-6 - download as .pdf file) (CH4 - White Paper: Higher Standards Better Schools for All Motion referred to the Cabinet via the Children's Services Scrutiny Committee for advice to the Council at its April meeting.) The Education and Inspections Bill was introduced in the House of Commons on 28 February and the Committee therefore decided to convene this special meeting to consider what comments to make on the three motions in the light of the Bill’s provisions, with a request to the Cabinet not to finalise its advice to the Council until its 21 March meeting, so that it might take into account the Committee’s advice. A summary of the Bill produced by the DfES is circulated with this agenda. The Bill itself can be seen on the Parliament web site.
Why has it been included?	To enable the Committee to comment on the three motions relating to the White Paper in the light of the provisions of the Education and Inspections Bill. The Committee is asked to determine its advice on the motions.
How is the Committee going to deal with it?	During a one meeting session.
Who is going to take part in this piece of work?	All Members of this Committee. Mr Geoff Jones, Senior Adviser (Additional Educational Needs), has been invited to attend in order to answer any questions may wish to ask.
Work to be done prior to the meeting:	Members are asked to consider what response they might wish to make on the three motions (CH4) in preparation for the discussion.
Documents Members should bring to the meeting:	Report CH11 on the White Paper accompanying the agenda for the Committee’s meeting on 28 February.